 |
|
|
Bihar to tighten grip
on coaching centres
Rajasthan’s green drive fails to take root |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
BJP remains non-committal
US varsities full of Indians
Nod to varsity status for Presidency College
AP top cops got medals for feat they never did
Naxal Menace-V
Chennai Diary
Feel like a maharaja chugging from Kolkata to Delhi
HC: No to religious structures in offices
India playing ‘stellar role’ in Afghanistan
Amar sings paeans to Sonia, Rahul
Minor shuffle in Maya govt
El Nino waning, normal rain this year: Met
Garbage dump turns cash cow for Mumbai civic body
BJP appoints state unit chiefs for NE 18 hurt in clashes in
Rae Bareli
|
|
Bihar to tighten grip
on coaching centres
Although the details of the proposed Bill have not been made public, as it has to be placed and debated in the state legislature, sources reveal that the bill envisages to make registration mandatory for all institutes imparting coaching in engineering, medical and other streams. The institute will have to furnish details like number of students enrolled, subjects being taught, faculty members engaged and the available infrastructure to cater to the needs of the students. The District Magistrate concerned would be the Registration Authority and the registration would be valid for three years only, after which it would have to be renewed. The Bill also seeks to regulate the number of students in a coaching class as per the CBSE guidelines. There would be a cap on the number of students in each batch and also the overall intake. A senior official informed that the proposed bill would also incorporate penal clauses, involving monetary fines in case of violation of the rules. A committee headed by the District Magistrate would monitor the functioning of the coaching institutes. There would also be a cell to redress the grievances of the students. In case an institute is found to be guilty of making false claims to lure the students, it would lose its registration with immediate effect. The need to bring a legislation to regulate the private coaching institutes in the state was being felt for quite some time but the immediate provocation to put the state government on the job came after the students in Patna went on rampage last month to protest against their exploitation which resulted into the death of two students. An inquiry by the HRD department of the Bihar government revealed that no state had brought a legislation to regulate the private coaching institutes so far, said Principal Secretary of HRD, Anjani Kumar Singh.
|
|
Rajasthan’s green drive fails to take root
Jaipur, March 21 As per the latest figures released by the state’s forest ministry, anywhere between 60 and 90 lakh saplings planted under the scheme have wilted away due to pests and lack of water. According to the records of Harit Rajasthan tabled in the Assembly, one-third of the saplings planted under the scheme have died. About 259 lakh saplings were planted at a cost of over Rs 100 crore, which means a huge amount of public money that went into procurement of saplings has gone down the drain. Out of the total saplings planted, about 149 lakh plants have survived so far, with Karauli and Tonk being the worst hit districts as over 50 per cent of the plants died there. Similarly, the number of dead saplings is over 30 per cent in Udaipur, Kota, Rajsamand, Banswara and Bhilwara districts. Breeding of a single plant costs between Rs 20-25 in government nurseries and a little more in private nurseries. Apart from lack of rain, there were various drawbacks in the scheme. Though the government exhibited strong will and went on planting a huge number of trees, no measures were taken to ensure protection of these trees. A majority of trees on the roadside fell prey to animals. Also no attention was paid to track growth of planted trees. Meanwhile, the experts, who had earlier questioned the government move when it had decided to go ahead with massive plantation drive, say they stand vindicated. “The state was reeling under drought conditions and it was very much clear that the government will find it tough to arrange water for the saplings,” they said. According to them, accountability of officers concerned should be fixed and monitoring panels should be formed to make the scheme a success. The government had declared 27 out of the total 33 districts in the state as drought-hit. On the other hand, Forest Minister Ramlal Jat said the scheme had made people more responsible towards environment. “Some plants have died due to scanty rainfall, but the scheme has done well in sensitising people on planting and conserving trees,” he added.
|
|
Modi fails to appear before SIT in riots case
The SIT has also not received any communication from the state government regarding the summons issued on March 11. The SIT’s Gandhinagar office was kept open today and its members were present in case Modi presented himself, but the senior BJP leader ignored the summons and gave the panel a miss. SIT chief RK Raghavan was, however, out of town. Official sources said Modi (59) had sought legal alternatives in response to the summons by the SIT on March 11. It was for the first time that the Chief Minister was called for questioning in connection with the riots. Modi was summoned by the SIT in connection with a complaint filed by Zakia Jaffery, wife of slain former MP Eshan Jaffrey in the 2002 Gulburg Society riots case. The former Congress MP was killed along with 69 others by a mob at Gulburg Society complex in Ahmedabad in February, 2002. The Congress attacked Modi for not appearing before the SIT saying it was “contemptuous” and showed that he “loves to hide”. “The SIT’s direction to Narendra Modi to appear before it shows the seriousness and the importance attached to the issue by the apex court,” party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said in New Delhi. “For Modi to avoid appearing on any ground or pretext is contemptuous and would show that he loves to hide,” he said. On April 27 last year, the Supreme Court had asked the SIT to inquire into Zakia’s complaint in which she had alleged that Modi and 62 others, including his cabinet colleagues, police officials and senior bureaucrats aided and abetted the riots that left over 1,000 persons dead. — PTI
|
|
BJP remains non-committal
New Delhi, March 21 Asked if Modi would depose before the Supreme Court-appointed SIT, BJP spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy said the government of Gujarat had made it clear that it would act as per the law. “This government has always supported and respected the law and will abide by it. It has the highest respect for the Supreme Court order and directions,” he said. However, Rudy alleged the whole process could be an attempt to tarnish Modi’s image. “The BJP feels this is a larger ploy and conspiracy to malign and tarnish the image of the most progressive state and its leader,” he added.
|
|
US varsities full of Indians
New Delhi, March 21 Arguing that inflow of foreign faculty and campuses would prevent the increasing outflow of students from the country, Assocham president Swati Piramal said foreign varsities at home would boost domestic economy by helping it save US $ 7.5 billion (about Rs 34,500 crore annually) that Indian students spend abroad. This money, the Assocham said, is being lost on account of over lakhs of Indian students going abroad every year for studies. The number of Indian students enrolling in foreign universities has increased sharply from 1,23,000 in 2006 to a little over five lakh last year. Reason: lack of enough institutions (about 400 universities for 1.1 billion people) and strict quota system that leaves few seats in the general category. “Students going abroad cost the country a foreign exchange outflow of US $ 10 billion annually. If foreign universities come here, three-fourth of this exodus would end,” Piramal said, favouring the radical Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operation) Bill, which has generateda heated debate across the country. The Assocham also argued that the Bill would prevent brain drain by creating work opportunities for Indian students at home. Industry enthusiasm over the bill apart, academics have apprehensions about the law that will allow foreign universities to set up campuses, award independent degrees and also decide their own fee structures. These new universities will be treated on a par with private unaided higher educational institutions that are currently not bound to offer the 27 per cent OBC quota that all central higher educational institutions must implement under the law. Former JNUite, currently member of the All India Democratic Women’s Association, Albeena Shakeel today said, “No great institution will open off shore campus because they would want to preserve their brand value. Harvard and Oxford do not even have local branches.” India is second only to China in world as far as students studying abroad, particularly the US goers, are concerned. The US is now worrying that it is gradually losing ground to China and India in terms of quantity of degree-seeking engineers and scientists.
|
|
Nod to varsity status for Presidency College
Kolkata, March 21 The Bill was passed with the voice vote since the Opposition - the Congress, the Trinamool Congress and the lone SUCI member - boycotted the House as a mark of protest against the legislation, which, they alleged had provision intended to make the institution “another stronghold of CPM”. The Congress and the TMC also urged the Governor to not give his assent to the Bill in its present form. Several teachers’ unions and associations of the colleges and universities also protested against the passing of the Bill. Interestingly, the CPM-controlled college and university teachers association (WBCUTA) also protested against the Bill.
|
|
AP top cops got medals for feat they never did
Hyderabad, March 21 The three officers - Shiv Shankar, DIG (Special Intelligence Bureau), Sriram Tiwari and Superintendent of Police of Karimnagar district Nalin Prabhat - were given the prestigious awards in 2003 for eliminating three top Maoist leaders in an encounter in Karimnagar district in 1999. However, a petition has been filed in the high court alleging that these police personnel were not present during the exchange of fire that took place between the police and extremists in the Koyyur forest area on December 2, 1999. The encounter had proved to be the deadliest ever blow to Maoists as three of their top-rung leaders and central committee members of the then CPI (ML- People’s War), Nalla Adi Reddy (alias Shyam), Seelam Naresh (alias Murali) and Santosh Reddy (alias Mahesh), were killed. The ultra outfit and several civil rights groups had then claimed that the trio was picked up by the police from their hideout in Bangalore, brought to Karimnagar in a helicopter and done to death in cold blood. “None of the three police officers, who claimed the medals for bravery, was present at the encounter site,” petitioner KN Rao, a senior high court lawyer, said. He demanded withdrawal of the awards and punishment for the officials for making false claims. Acting on the petition, a Division Bench of the high court has asked the Central Government to reconsider its decision. The Bench, comprising Justice G Raghuram and GV Seetapathy, expressed displeasure over the manner in which the Union Home Ministry cleared the awards without proper verification. “The court wanted the government to review the whole issue as the prestige and integrity of the award is in jeopardy,” the petitioner said. Counsel for the Union Government argued that it went by the recommendation of the state government. The court, however, did not buy the argument, saying it amounted to “outsourcing the responsibility” and made it clear that it was the duty of the Centreto protect the sanctity of the awards. The Koyyur encounter was a major turning point in the extremist movement in the state. In retaliation to the killing of their top leaders, the Maoists had eliminated the then Panchayatraj Minister A Madhav Reddy in a land mine blast in March, 2000. They also made an abortive bid to assassinate the then Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in October, 2003. The state government had ordered a departmental inquiry into the controversy over the gallantry awards. Though the government initially recommended withdrawal of medals after a CID probe, the disciplinary proceedings were abruptly dropped in 2007 after the IPS officers claimed they were present at the spot of encounter, but their names were not included in the official records on security grounds. “On the basis of an ambiguous conclusion of disciplinary inquiry by the state government, the Union Government apparently closed further consideration of the issue whether fraud, misrepresentation or grave factual error had vitiated award of the medals,” the court said. The judges, however, said they could not determine or infer whether the three officers had personally participated in the encounter for which the medals were awarded.
|
|
Naxal Menace-V
Marandi is the chief of the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) that he floated four years ago. “The state government should tell people whether it is in favour of ‘Operation Green Hunt’ against the Naxals or not,” Marandi told The Tribune. When Jharkhand was formed 10 years ago after the bifurcation of Bihar, Marandi became the first Chief Minister of the state. At that time, he was with the Bharatiya Janata Party. He, however, parted company with the BJP to launch his own party, the JVM, in June 2006. After the November-December 2009 Assembly elections, Marandi was a front-runner for the Chief Minister’s post with the Congress backing. But the JMM came to power with the support of the BJP.“The JMM and the BJP being major parties in the government should also clear their stand on the joint operation of the state police and the central paramilitary forces,” said Marandi. On the other hand, the Congress has alleged that the Shibu Soren government is conniving with the Maoists and the recent abduction of the Block Development Officer, Prashant Layek, was ‘pre-planned.’ Layek was recently abducted from Dalbumgarh, with Naxals demanding the release of some villagers in return for his release. According to Naxals, the villagers were ‘innocent’ and the police had implicated them in various criminal cases, naming them as Maoists. The state government accepted the Naxals’ demand and released some of the arrested villagers on bail. “Shibu Soren seems to have tacit understanding with the Maoists. The abduction of the BDO was pre-planned,” a Congress spokesman told this correspondent. Marandi has been aggressively taking Chief Minister to task alleging that Shibu Soren’s stand on Naxalism was confusing.“The JVM in its recent executive body meeting had passed a resolution to keep pressurising the state to ensure law and order in the state and its development,” he said.
|
|
Chennai Diary Workers involved in the construction of the new Secretariat and Assembly complex in Tamil Nadu were treated with a non-vegetarian feast on Sunday. Popular Hindi film songs were played as most of the workers were from the Hindi heartland. However, some of the officials who knew that Chief Minister M Karunanidhi was in the forefront of the anti-Hindi agitation in 1965 were a bit worried. Their hearts skipped a few beats when the Chief Minister, who came to the function later, mentioned the playing of Hindi songs. To their great relief, Karunanidhi said “as most of the workers were from the Hindi heartland, it is appropriate to play songs in their mother tongue. The DMK was not opposed to Hindi as a language. The party opposed the imposition of Hindi in school curriculum”. IPL T20 vs Kollywood Tamil film industry has suddenly started disliking cricket. Even a few of the Kollywood stars, who were cricket fans, are not watching the game now, thanks to the popularity of IPL Twenty20. After the tournament started, the number of filmgoers has dwindled and most of the films that hit the screens last week have failed to fetch the expected collection. Kollywood used to release many films in April and May, as they would draw youths and college students during summer vacation. Now, most of the theatre owners are afraid of releasing new films next month -- due to the IPL fever. Tamil Nadu Cinema Theatres Association president S Panneerselvam openly complained at a function that IPL was causing losses to the film industry. A film producer said Kollywood stars should start a campaign to explain the youths that IPL was only a commercial event and it had nothing to do with developing cricket or bringing laurels to the nation or state. A film director, who followed suit, said cricket was the game of the elite and upper castes, while football and hockey are common man's sport. From politics to films The season of film stars and writers invading politics is over. The reverse process has started now. Deputy Chief Minister MK Stalin's son Udhanidhi has jumped into Kollywood and has started producing films. Durai Dayanidhi, son of Union Minister MK Alagiri, has also turned into a film producer. DMK's Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva has been booked to act in a movie. Now, efforts are on to book Union Minister Alagiri in a film titled "Thoonga Nagaram" (city that never sleeps). Politicians act better than many film actors, says a leading film director. Power game When PMK leader S Ramadoss campaigned in a few villages for the Pennagaram bypoll, there were frequent power cuts. Ramadoss addressed a few meetings in darkness without speakers. After a few days, it was known that local DMK functionaries are deliberately switching off power supply from the nearby transformers. Now, a group of PMK cadres have a special task: when Ramadoss addresses meetings they should stand near transformers and see nobody tampers with power supply.
|
|
Feel like a maharaja chugging from Kolkata to Delhi
Kolkata, March 21 The train is the latest offering from Indian Railways on the lines of the Palace On Wheels to generate revenue and help tourists explore India. It possesses elegant features and comfort. The journey from Kolkata to Delhi by Maharajas' Express has been christened Celestial India. It will cover pilgrim and tourist centres like Gaya and Varanasi, the Bandhavgarh forests, Khajuraho, Agra and Gwalior before terminating in Delhi. The train chugged out with 38 passengers from Kolkata Saturday night. “I am delighted that this train was flagged off from this great city called Kolkata,” said veteran journalist and broadcaster Mark Tully, who was present at the flagging-off ceremony. He said: "Maharajas' Express will herald a new era in luxury and travel. This is a great experience indeed." The train has five deluxe cabins, six junior suites, two suites and one grand presidential suite. The charges for the presidential suite are $2,500 (Rs 113,762) per person per day. It is equipped with LCD televisions, DVD players, individual temperature control, direct dial telephones, Wi-Fi internet connectivity and large panoramic windows. “My best wishes are there with all the passengers who are the first to board the train from Kolkata. It's a gift to those who want to savour royal India and can afford it,” Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee said during her brief address. — IANS
|
|
HC: No to religious structures in offices
Chennai, March 21 Upholding a petition against a temple inside the premises of the Collector's office at Tirunelveli - a district in south Tamil Nadu - a Bench comprising justices FM Ibrahim Kalifullah and KBK Vasuki directed authorities to ensure that no religious functions were organised inside government offices or its premises. Officials should monitor the activities within government offices and strictly implement the government order issued by the Personnel and Administrative Reforms Department on December 13, 1993, the judges said. “When such a government order has been issued, it is the responsibility of the state to ensure that such a prohibition is implemented in letter and spirit,” the court said.
|
|
India playing ‘stellar role’ in Afghanistan
New Delhi, March 21 “I do not think that India has been squeezed out. I think India is playing a stellar role in rebuilding Afghanistan which has been acknowledged by the people of Afghanistan and by the legitimate Government of Afghanistan, and that is what matters,” Krishna said in an interview to Karan Thapar for Devil’s Advocate. He was asked about the media reports that whilst Pakistan’s influence was growing, India was either left out of the loop or is being squeezed out. On Karzai’s statement, the minister said: “In President Karzai’s assessment, I think that is the scheme of things. We take note of that”, was his reply when asked if it worried India. About attacks on Indians, Krishna noted that those who have gone there on humanitarian purposes are unarmed which makes them “easy and soft targets” but he said Afghanistan government has assured that they will be able to protect the Indian personnel who have gone there on call of duty. — PTI
|
|
Amar sings paeans to Sonia, Rahul
Garhmukteshwar (Ghaziabad), March 21 Addressing a rally here, Amar Singh said he regretted making adverse remarks against the Congress president and the Amethi MP when he was with the Samajwadi Party. “I did so as I was bound by the party line. But now I can say she (Sonia) is the only woman in the world who has sacrificed the post of Prime Minister for the cause of unity of the nation,” he said last evening. Crediting Rahul Gandhi with giving “direction to politics”, he praised the Congress general secretary for staying with the poor in their homes as it showed that “he believes in equality.” Amar Singh said he would support RLD leader Ajit Singh in his fight for ‘Harit Pradesh’ to be carved out from western districts of Uttar Pradesh. The MP, who had said he might float a new party by March end, did not refer to the matter. Continuing his tirade against Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, he accused him of making it a “family party” and vowed to exhaust “all efforts to defeat Mulayam and his family members”. —
PTI
|
|
Minor shuffle in Maya govt
Lucknow, March 21 Till now Siddiqui was looking after the ministries of excise, public works, housing and urban development, irrigation and sugar industries. Interestingly, till now Agriculture Minister Laxmi Narain Chaudhury, a Jat from Mathura, has been given the insignificant portfolio of vocational education - a department to which she has shifted her once most trusted bureaucrat Vijay Shankar Pandey, just three days ago. Till now this department was one of the 36 departments that CM Mayawati was personally looking after. According to observers the CM probably did not want to deal with Pandey on a day-to-day basis any longer hence she handed over this portfolio to another minister.
|
|
El Nino waning, normal rain this year: Met
New Delhi, March 21 “In all probability, 2010 will experience normal monsoon, especially with some early indications that El-Nino effect is waning,” says Agriculture Secretary PK Basu. His statement has been endorsed by Meteorological Department director BP Yadav, who says that many weather models are predicting that El Nino, a climate phenomenon marked by rising Pacific Ocean temperatures that triggered droughts in 2004 and 2009, is weakening. Last year, the country’s policy makers were caught off guard by Met’s monsoon predictions, which had to be downgraded. The 2009 monsoon was 22 per cent deficient and caused sizable downfall in foodgrain production. Presently, the health of country’s rivers, majority of which are rain-fed, is poor. Manoj Misra of ‘Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan’ says, “Duration and intensity of rainfall is decreasing, leading to poor flow in most rivers. Only if the river catchment areas get good rains, the dry season flow can be of longer duration.” The country requires also good rains to recharge its groundwater. The Northwest, especially Haryana, Punjab, Delhi and Rajasthan, are overusing groundwater reserves, making them the most overexploited states. Assessments carried out by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and states have repeatedly shown alarming results. So far, the Met Office has not given any prediction and its first monsoon bulletin will be out only in April. But the most-awaited weather phenomenon will have the weatherman in jitters till it finally makes an appearance at the southernmost tip of Kerala around June 1. It is not only farmers and the common man who await the monsoon every year, the health of the country’s ruling party and economy also depends upon weather phenomenon. Weather expert Akhilesh Gupta says monsoon affects nearly 18,000 km area from East to West and 6,000 km from South to North, covering entire central Africa, almost entire South and South-East Asia, parts of North Australia, North Indian Ocean parts of South Indian Ocean, China Sea, and parts of West Pacific Ocean, not just India and Pakistan but almost 25 countries. There are seven components, all equally important for the success of monsoon over the Indian subcontinent. For example high temperatures between April and May are very favourable for the monsoon to establish, while another powerful factor is “Heat Low” that decides the temperature and pressure difference between land and the sea. India’s Heat Low centered in Jacobabad in Pakistan. Besides there are several external factors like La Nina, El Nino, southern oscillations or Indian Ocean dipole, adding to complexities of the monsoon.
|
|||
|
Garbage dump turns cash cow for Mumbai civic body So far, the BMC has earned about Rs 20 crore by trading in carbon credits, which follows reduction in the carbon emission rates (CER). One CER, which is equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide reduced, is used by corporate entities and governments in developed world to offset their carbon emissions. And the earning is expected to increase in the coming years as the amount of methane generated by the site increases, says Additional Municipal Commissioner RA Rajeev. He says garbage produces methane, which will be used as fuel for power plants. Located across the Gorai creek (near the Esselworld amusement park), the Gorai dumping site was closed in late 2007. And it was the first landfill site in India to be closed as per norms specified by the United Nations. The closure was ordered by the Supreme Court. Spread over 17 hectares, the site is on Friday a green zone, complete with a jogging track and recreational facilities. The garbage collected here for more than two decades lies beneath the surface 'compacted' using globally accepted techniques. To begin with, the BMC built a concrete wall one metre high and seven metres deep to prevent leaching of pollutants from the landfill and into the creek. Forty subterranean wells linked by a pipeline network were constructed inside the dump to transport methane gas generated by putrefying garbage to a power generating plant. |
|||
|
BJP appoints state unit chiefs for NE New Delhi, March 21 Among other newly appointed state party unit presidents are- KP Muthokoiya, who has been retained as BJPunit chief in Lakshadweep (he lost the last year’s MP elections to his Congress rival), Lal Hua (elevated from the position of vice-president of Mizoram BJP unit’s) and HS Shyamla (formerly vice-president of the party unit in Meghalaya). Little known Manoj Kant Deoraj has been appointed as the Tripura The list was announced late this evening by BJP president Nitin Gadkari. None of the state BJP presidents appointed today figured in the list of party office bearers and national executive announced by Gadkari a while ago.
|
|||
|
18 hurt in clashes in
Rae Bareli
Rae Bareli, March 21 The trouble erupted when some persons objected to the route of the religious procession, the police said, adding the two sides indulged in heavy stone-pelting. Some incidents of arson were also reported during the communal flare-up, they said. The police reinforcements were rushed to the trouble-torn town. —PTI
|
|||
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
To regulate and wield effective control over thousands of private coaching centers that have mushroomed in every nook and cranny of the state, Bihar is all set to introduce a legislation in the ongoing Budget session.
Kolkata, March 21
Patna, March 21
Ahmedabad, March 21
Opposition leaders of Jharkhand, including state’s first Chief Minister Babulal Marandi, are upset over the Shibu Soren government not coming out clear on the Maoist issue.Many of them are blaming the Jharkhand Mukti Morca (JMM)-led government for continuous violence by ‘red rebels.’After five policemen were killed by Naxalites at Bishunpur in Gumla district, Marandi asked the state government to make its stand on Naxalism clear.
Mumbai, March 21